British Isles

Queen Elizabeth Cruise Review to Europe - Western Europe

frankaldrich804

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 7+ cruises

Review: 1

Helpful Votes: 107

Overall rating:

2.5 out of 5

Verified Review

14 Night British Isles (Southampton Roundtrip)

Sail date: July 13, 2018

Ship: Queen Elizabeth

Cabin number: 6062

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 5 years ago

Review summary

Of the twelve cruises we have taken this one ranks at the bottom. Not everything was terrible, but the exceptions were few. The good: Probably the easiest boarding we have had. There was no confusion, no running around looking for something. The boarding process probably lasted fifteen minutes. The ships overall appearance and décor was exceptional. The look of wood with all the trimmings made you feel comfortable and very warm. For a ship just refurbished two years ago there is a lot of wear and tear. The bad: The staff appears more disinterested than any other ship we have sailed. On most of the ships we have cruised there seems to be an attitude of making you feel like a guest, far less on this ship. The lido staff is downright unfriendly. On many occasions a staff member removed either a plate of glass from the table, we would say thank you, just to be ignored. Problem solving seems to be absent. Our transfer from the ship to the airport was arranged by the excursions department. Heathrow airport is one of the largest in the world. I stopped by the desk to verify the correct terminal. I was told I would have to go the library upstairs log onto a computer, at my cost, to verify the correct terminal. Only after leaving I decided this was not right and returned to the counter just in time to find another associate giving her instructions on how to find this information. Two questions, one why was someone new not given instructions on how to handle questions, and second why not try to get the guest to return. The ugly: Our booking agent had us select the 8:30 dining saying “they have open seating like other ships, just request other dining times”. When we asked the Maître D about open seating we were informed not on any Cunard. Not solving the problem then he haughtily told us to return on the following day and he “would see what he could do”. Makes you really feel like a guest. Tendering. On two occasions we tendered into port. First being Edinburgh. Along with the ships tenders we also had a large ship used for this purpose aiding in the process. Even with the larger ship there was still a delay over an hour and a half. The second was in Guernsey. This was a horrible experience, with over a three and a half delay. Some people waited over four hours. Very poor planning.